Category: App Analysis

Twitter officially launched in March of 2006.

Demographics:

• 79% of users are from the United States
• 42% of internet users aged 15-17 use Twitter
• 32% of internet users aged 18-28 use Twitter
• 13% of internet users aged 50-64 use Twitter
• Female
  • 23% of girls ages 13-14
  • 49% of girls ages 15-17
• Male
  • 19% of boys ages 13-14
  • 34% of boys ages 15-17

Twitter has been utilized by professional sports teams ever since the beginning of the app. This platform has given the teams the ability to directly communicate with fans. They are able to have fans respond to posts, talk to fans from there, post polls, and post “trendy” things such as memes and other graphics. Another way that teams use this platform is through posting sponsor related items. For example, some teams have programs where they get deals at sponsoring companies, such as McDonalds, Papa Johns, etc. when teams score a certain amount of goals. These promos are then posted on the team’s twitters, letting fans know about this discount and a great opportunity for sponsor possibilities. One of the best ways that teams use the app is through game updates as well as videos, gifs, and player shots of goals and goal scorers respectively. This gives those who are not able to watch the game the ability to follow along with the action. Players also utilize this app to post things about what they are doing off the field and connect with fans.

In 2017, Twitter brought in a total of $2.443 billion in revenue. They made 86% of their total revenue from advertisements on their site. The app sells promoted tweets, promoted accounts, and promoted trends to any user on the site. Through these promoted features, accounts will have their reach broadened through algorithms the company uses. They also sell a lot of the data on their site that relate to consumer response as this information is vital to many companies.

Twitter has a few market competitors, but no real threats in their direct field. Apps like Instagram and Facebook pose some threats to Twitter but for the vast majority, these apps are used simultaneously by consumers. Twitter also has a second use as a news site because of the ability to search trends, putting consumers on the foreground of breaking news situations. The company has had issues creating profits as they have just recently posted their first profitable quarter ever. From a different angle, Twitter has a fairly volatile record on the stock exchange and have been turning an uptrend for the first time in a few years.

 

 

 

Sources:

https://blog.hootsuite.com/twitter-demographics/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/274568/quarterly-revenue-of-twitter/

https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/120114/how-does-twitter-twtr-make-money.asp

https://www.recode.net/2018/2/8/16989834/twitter-q4-2018-earnings-revenue-jack-dorsey

 

 

 

Instagram officially launched on October 6, 2010.

Demographics:

• Age
  • 59% of 18-29 year olds use Instagram
  • 33% of 30-49 year olds use Instagram
  • 18% of 50-64 year olds use Instagram
  • 8% of people 65+ use Instagram
• Gender
  • 38% of women online use Instagram
  • 28% of men online use Instagram

Sports teams and organizations primarily use Instagram through their public accounts. On said account, the teams are able to share highlights of games, score updates, off-field activities, birthday posts for players, and many more. In the example of my favorite team, the Philadelphia Flyers, they post ‘memes’ about Valentine’s Day, photos on player’s birthdays, updates about players receiving awards, and promotional videos. The Flyers also kept the fans up-to-date during the All-Star break as they posted photos and videos of the team’s representative at the event. The Flyers also utilize the ‘stories’ feature of the app to post promotional deals just hours before a game starts. When there are a number of open seats left, the team will post a deal promoting a flat rate of $20 per ticket for college students. Sports teams and organizations are also able to promote and target certain posts to different demographics.

Instagram had a projected revenue of $7.019 billion for 2018. The vast majority of the revenue comes from advertisements on their platform. Upwards of 90%-95% of their total revenue actually comes from their advertisements; known as some of the best bang for your buck in the industry. The ads are directly targeted to users that meet Instagram’s algorithms. On Instagram, ads average somewhere between $0.70 and $1.00 per click. Instagram ads actually have the highest engagement rate of all digital ad placements.

Instagram has been facing more and more competitors in the market as social media platforms have been trying to add similar features to each other. Fortunately for Instagram, their wide consumer base allows them to stay positioned as a top dog in the industry. While Snapchat was one of the first apps to include the ‘story’ feature, Instagram joined in quickly after and have surpassed Snapchat story views in a short period of time. All-in-all, the challenges that the company is facing is exactly on par with what all other social media sites are dealing with. Instagram is lucky to have jumped into the game early, standing as one of the giants in the industry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

https://wersm.com/the-complete-history-of-instagram/

https://sproutsocial.com/insights/new-social-media-demographics/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/271633/annual-revenue-of-instagram/

http://www.businessofapps.com/data/instagram-statistics/

https://aggregateblog.com/instagram-ads-cost-and-bidding/

 

 

 

Facebook was launched in February of 2004.

Demographics:

• Gender
  • 53% of users are female
  • 47% of users are male
• Age
  • 82% of 18-29-year-olds online in the US are on Facebook
  • 79% of 30-49-year-olds online in the US are on Facebook
  • 56% of U.S. online users ages 65+ use Facebook
  • 74% of college gradutes are on Facebook

Sports teams use the app through a public page where any Facebook user is open to following them. On their page, the team creates posts about recent scores, the upcoming schedule, promotion deals with partnered companies, charity events that team may be hosting, hype videos, and more. The teams continue their posts into the off-season, usually posting recaps of the previous year, hype videos to keep fans excited, and any news regarding trades, coaching changes, and more. Looking at the Philadelphia Flyers specifically, they have a link to their Instagram feed, an events page, and even a place where you are able to talk to a Flyers rep live. Also, Facebook has made the push to how a few lives sporting events on their website, expanding their reach into the sports streaming world as well.

Facebook makes the majority of their money through advertisements on their website. In the third quarter of 2017, they posted a total of $7.9 billion in revenue from digital advertisements alone. Through the ads on their site, companies are able to target certain regions, ages, sexual orientation, and even income groups. In 2017, Facebook brought in $40.653 billion in revenue and pocketed $15.934 billion in net income.

The app has been facing challenges from the other mainstream social media apps like Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram. The positive for Facebook is that the majority of users and companies on other platforms also use their site. As time has gone on, companies have recognized the need to have a presence on all the aforementioned platforms. Due to the fact that the demographics are different on most social media platforms, it’s in any sports brand’s best interest to have an account or page on as many outlets as they can.

 

Sources:

https://www.omnicoreagency.com/facebook-statistics/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/277229/facebooks-annual-revenue-and-net-income/

 

Though I could not find the initial release of ESPN’s app, one of their secondary apps, WatchESPN, launched in 2011. Currently ESPN is working on a new app that will house the features of their multiple apps within one.

Demographics:

• In 2016, an average of 69.3 million unique users spent 4.4 billion minutes on ESPN’s mobile content
• WatchESPN/ESPN app streaming averaged 8.2 million unique devices and 1.8 billion minutes per month
• Approximately 62 million Americans watch ESPN at least once a week
• 3% of ESPN.com traffic comes from the United States
• Each person going to ESPN.com averaged 6:59 of time spent on the website

The app is utilized in the same manner by each sports team. The articles posted on the website come from ESPN’s team in an effort to keep content equal about each team. As expected, the teams that comes from big markets and the teams who historically do well receive more focus than the teams consistently in the bottom of the standings. Once inside of the app, you are able to select your favorite teams which will customize your feed with the scores you want coming first, as well as updates about scores, news, and anything relating to your favorite teams. Brands are able to advertise to on the app but most of the time I notice ads from things non-sport related (like Geico, Pearson, believe it or not, and Papa John’s).

The majority of ESPN’s revenue comes from subscription fees which are paid by cable providers. Their next highest revenue stream is their TV and mobile advertisements, which only make up half of the total money they get from subscription fees. ESPN also owns 8 cable network channels where they stream the majority of professional and collegiate sports, nationwide.

ESPN is currently facing a few issues, most importantly, the amount of people cutting the cord and getting rid of cable. Every cable household that pays for an ESPN package is worth an average of $8 to the company. If more and more people continue to drop their cable package, ESPN will be losing a large chunk of their biggest revenue stream. Not only that, but ESPN’s ad revenues have been declining as well. There has been a consistent year-over-year decline is revenue from cable subscription packages, daily users on their app, and ad revenue for a couple years. Though they have nothing close to a shortage in capital, the company appears to be facing pressing issues that will greatly affect the direction of the company.

 

 

Sources:

http://espnmediazone.com/us/espn-inc-fact-sheet/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/228943/cable-tv-networks-espn-watched-within-the-last-7-days-usa/

https://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/espn.com

http://www.businessinsider.com/espn-revenue-subscriber-fees-2015-11

 

Barstool was first launched as a black and white newspaper in Boston back in 2003. Now they are listed as “a digital media company that applies comedy and satire to pop culture, politics, gorgeous women, trending internet topics and of course, sports.”

Demographics:

• 200 million global monthly page views
• 7 million global monthly unique visitors
• 2,168 sites linking Barstool sports
• United Sates – 95.6% of visitors
• Canada – 2.3% of visitors
• United Kingdom – 0.6% of visitors
• Barstool Sports App:
  • #22 App in sports category (United States)
  • Previously #2 app

The ability for sports brands to use this platform is limited. Since Barstool lists themselves as a media outlet, the content on their website comes directly from employees. Large sports brands are able to advertise on their website or app which will beneficial to companies targeting males in their late teens and early twenties. A unique way in which teams can use the app is through player interviews and content. Professional athletes are frequent guests to Barstool, whether through an interview for an article, a video series, or a podcast, teams can gain recognition through one of their players engaging with Barstool.

Barstool has made a lot of their money through advertisements as well as their online store. The website and mobile app both feature a store section where people are able to purchase a wide variety of sport related goods, such as apparel and flags. As any good mobile app is doing now-a-days, Barstool has a lot of advertisements on their website and app. With their heavily concentrated demographics, companies are willing to pay up in order to be featured on their platforms. Also, in 2016, the company was bought at a $10 to $15 million valuation. Barstool also ran a TV show on Comedy Central, they have multiple radio shows, and a large following across their many social media accounts. Barstool’s annual revenue is somewhere around the $10-20 million range but they were already given a $15 million investment from the Chernin Group early this year.

Barstool is currently facing a few competitors in the market. In the sports world, the company has to battle the market giants such as ESPN, CBS sports, and NBC sports. Barstool made a name for themselves by putting a comedic tone on their reporting and some outlets are following in suit. Their direct competition comes from sites like BroBible, Deadspin, and The Big Lead. While Barstool does not hold a lot of capital, they can largely operate without much. The biggest source of their content comes from articles and videos made by their staff that only comes at the cost of an employee salary.

 

 

 

 

Sources:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/markjburns/2017/07/11/past-present-future-how-barstool-sports-is-swinging-for-the-fences-in-digital-media/#21db1af64edb

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/barstool-sports-scrappy-digital-news-outlet-has-prime-time-ambitions-2017-02-22

https://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/barstoolsports.com

https://www.similarweb.com/website/barstoolsports.com#websiteMobileApps

http://www.businessinsider.com/watch-barstool-sports-bizarre-acquisition-announcement-2016-1

http://variety.com/2018/digital/news/barstool-chernin-investment-1202674676/

The app was first launched in July of 2011 under the name Picaboo but was rebranded as Snapchat just 2 months later.

Demographics:

• 71% of users are under 34 years old
• 45% of users are between 18-24 years old
• 50% of male college students
• 77% of female college students

Sports teams are using this platform via a public account that anyone can add. Through that account they are able to post pictures and videos of the players in the locker room before a game, warming up on the floor, they can post from charitable events, they can even run promos on their account. Sports companies like ESPN use the app with a worldwide story that is accessible from all Snapchat users. Sports brands also run ads on stories that target users directly. Another way brands use Snapchat is through ‘geofilters’ that can be set to a specific location, nationwide, or even worldwide.

The app is making money through people, brands, and locations purchasing ‘geofilters’ which will appear on a user’s screen when they take a picture or video in a certain location. People are also able to pay a small fee for a geofilter in a specific location but for a short period of time. The app is making most of their money through ads which appears when users are looking through stories. Also, Snapchat’s discover feature allows companies to purchase their own story that will be accessible by all users.

2015 Revenue: $58.66 million

2016 Revenue: $404.48 million

2017 Revenue: Projected $774.1 million

The app is definitely facing a few challenges and competitors. In terms of brands, both organizations and individual people, some users are switching to other social media platforms. Some influencers stopped using Snapchat nearly as much because of the broader reach that Instagram offers them. Looking at it from a different angle, the company went public not long ago and they have steadily declined, now standing 48% lower than the price of their IPO.

 

 

 

Sources:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/0/owns-snapchat-created/

https://www.omnicoreagency.com/snapchat-statistics/

https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/061915/how-snapchat-makes-money.asp

http://www.businessinsider.com/data-shows-nearly-half-of-snapchats-revenue-comes-from-discover-ads-2017-1